The New New Journalism

By
Dan CostaJan. 30, 2018, 1 a.m.

Virtual reality is enabling an innovative way of real-life storytelling.

Although it came into being a couple of decades before I entered the job market, "New Journalism" was one of the reasons I became a writer and editor. I grew up reading Hunter S. Thompson's stories in Rolling Stone. Yes, there were lots of drugs, but also politics, music, and the unmistakable voice of the the author.

What was "new" then is just journalism now. The media industry is in crisis, no doubt, but there has probably never been a better time to find long-form, personality-driven journalism. Hard as it is to make a living as a journalist, the pages of The Atlantic, Harper's, The New Yorker, and Esquire are still filled with good reads. Except now, most people read those stories online.

The old journalism has had a much tougher time in the Internet era, though. Click on a story, and Google News serves you 100 more stories covering the same topic, often with the same facts and photos. There is simply no reason to scroll down. Anyone writing stories that don't appear above the fold is finding it hard to pay bills these days. Indeed, the most significant differentiator among news stories is the ideology they serve. We used to call those stories "editorials."

To succeed in media, you need to bring some unique value. That could be new facts, but those are easily copied and not copyrightable. The value could be a unique voice and perspective, but that is reserved for the most talented among us. Just look at the scores of failed Thompson impersonators as proof (myself among them).

Technology is providing a new frontier for journalism, however, and virtual reality at at the very edge of it. In this month's cover story, PCMag's Terry Sullivan tours the latest experiences in virtual reality (VR) journalism. These aren't games or demos—they're immersive, engaging depictions of the most important stories of our time.

What is it like to be deaf? The New York Times can bring you there. Where are 860,000 Rohingya refugees sleeping at night? Al Jazeera can bring you there. When do you start to lose your mind when you're confined in a 6-by-9-foot cell? The Guardian can bring you there. (A project called "Notes on Blindness" was the inspiration for the cover of this issue.)

PCMag has written much about VR hardware and games, but the real power of virtual reality may lie in bringing us closer to reality. It isn't always pretty, but it has the potential to effectively foster empathy and learning in a world made weary by too much of the same information.

About the Author

Dan Costa is the Editor-in-Chief of PCMag.com and the Senior Vice President of Content for Ziff-Davis. He oversees the editorial operations for PCMag.com, Geek.com, ExtremeTech.com as well as PCMag's network of blogs, including AppScout and SecurityWatch. Dan makes frequent appearances on local, national, and international news programs, including CNN, MSNBC, FOX, ABC, and NBC where he shares his perspective on a variety of technology trends.

Dan began working at PC Magazine in 2005 as a senior editor, covering consumer electronics, blogging on Gearlog.com, and serving as the host of the weekly Gearlog Radio podcast. Prior to arriving at PCMag, Dan was Editor of the CNET Fortune ... See Full Bio